The subject matter herein relates generally to right angle connector assemblies.
A typical radio frequency (RF) connector assembly has a metal outer shell, an inner dielectric insert, and a center contact to carry an electrical signal which is secured within the inner dielectric insert. RF connector assemblies may be either plug connectors or jack connectors of either standard or reverse polarity configurations. RF connector assemblies may be either terminated to a cable or to a printed circuit board (PCB). For cable-mounted applications, the RF connector assembly may be used with coaxial cables in order to maintain the shielding around the electrical connection that the coaxial design offers.
Typical RF connector assemblies are not without disadvantages. For instance, some RF connector assemblies are right angle connector assemblies where mating and terminating ends of the right angle connectors are oriented generally perpendicular to one another. Such right angle connector assemblies are complex and costly to design, manufacture, and assemble. It is difficult to maintain the impedance of such connectors between the mating and terminating ends as the signal path turns 90° within the connector housing. Additionally, typical right angle RF connectors do not enable automated manufacturing. For example, in some existing right angle RF connectors, the center contact is inserted into the connector housing and then bent 90° manually using a tool in order to convey the signal path through the right angle corner. Furthermore, often the dielectric insert does not fully surround the center contact along the 90° bend, so shielding may be reduced and the electrical signal may be degraded.
In addition, housing components of typical RF connectors are often manufactured through a die cast process, which creates strong parts but is not as adapted for mass volume automated assembly as, for example, stamping and forming sheet metal to produce multiple identical parts on a carrier strip. Typical RF connectors also include many individual pieces, which makes automated assembly difficult. For example, the dielectric housing that surrounds the center contact along linear portions (e.g., not even along the right angle bend) may include two pieces that are each received in a respective corresponding shield and pressed together when the two shields are assembled. Thus, due to the complexity, number of different pieces, and manufacturing processes, typical right angle RF connectors are assembled by hand, which is time consuming.
A need remains for a right angle connector assembly that provides effective signal path shielding, reduces components, and allows for automatable manufacturing and assembly.